Food containing package with integral handle and method of making same

Abstract

A food product package includes a bulky food product hermetically sealed in a bag of heat shrunk film. The package has an integral self-supporting handle which is formed from plies of the film and which extends out from an end of the package in a conventional handle shape. The handle is formed by causing a skirt portion of the bag to heat shrink about a rigid member positioned to maintain the skirt portion spaced from an end of the package during shrinking.

Having described the invention in detail, what is claimed as new is: 
     
       1. A food package with integral carrying handle comprising: a) a closed food-product containing portion having a food product completely encased between plies of a heat shrunk film, a heat seal joining said plies to form a closed end of said food package and at least one of said plies extending outwardly as a skirt from said heat seal at said closed end;   b) a self-supporting handle of a defined shape integral said package at said closed end and being formed of the heat shrunk film of said skirt, said handle being oriented generally in a first plane proximate a plane which longitudinally bisects said food-product portion;   c) said handle including a hand grip and spaced side elements, said side elements each extending between and connected to said closed end and said hand grip respectively, and said side elements supporting said hand grip spaced longitudinally outwardly along said first plane from said closed end to define a hand opening therebetween;   d) said hand grip being a strip of said heat shrunk film of said skirt oriented generally perpendicular to said first plane over the entire length of said strip; and   e) each of said side elements at said connection to said hand grip being oriented perpendicular to said first plane and, at said connection to said closed end being oriented in said first plane.   
     
     
       2. A food product package as in claim 1 wherein said plies are part of a bag and said heat seal forms a preclosed end of said bag. 
     
     
       3. A food product package as in claim 1 wherein said handle including said strip is a desired predetermined shape formed of said heat shrunk film. 
     
     
       4. A food product package as in claim 3 wherein said handle is formed of two superimposed plies of said heat shrunk film which extend outwardly from said heat seal. 
     
     
       5. A food product package as in claim 1 wherein said strip of heat shrunk material forming said hand grip is a continuous curve having opposite ends thereof merging tangentially with said side elements. 
     
     
       6. A food product package as in claim 1 wherein said strip is curved in cross section perpendicular to said first plane. 
     
     
       7. A food product package as in claim 6 wherein said curved cross section is concave. 
     
     
       8. A method of forming a food package article with an integral, self-supporting handle extending in a longitudinal plane from an end of said food package, said method comprising the steps of: a) providing a package having i) a closed food containing portion including a food product encased between plies of a heat shrinkable film with a heat seal joining said plies to form a closed end of said food package and   ii) at least one ply of said heat shrinkable film extending outwardly from said heat seal and forming a limp skirt integral with said closed end, said limp skirt having an opening therein, two transversely spaced side portions and a skirt section wherein said side portions are integral with and separate said skirt section from said closed end and said opening exists between said side portions and between said closed end and said skirt section;     b) positioning a rigid handle-shaping member in said opening such that said member is interposed between said food containing portion and said skirt section;   c) heating said package for concurrently heat shrinking said plies of heat shrinkable film which encases said food product and said skirts while   d) restraining, by means of said rigid handle-shaping member, said heat shrinking of said skirt for drawing said skirt section to a position oriented flat against said handle-shaping member and generally perpendicular to said longitudinal plane;   e) cooling said skirt while maintaining the position of said handle-forming member thereby setting said skirt to a self-supporting shape including a hand grip formed of said skirt section and side elements formed of said two transversely spaced side portions which support said hand grip spaced outward from said closed end to define a hand opening therebetween; and   f) removing said rigid handle shaping member from said opening.   
     
     
       9. A method as in claim 8 wherein: a) said positioning step includes placing said package on a support and said handle-shaping member upstands from said support;   b) said heating step includes conveying said support through a heating zone; and   c) thereafter removing said rigid handle shaping member from said opening by removing said food package article from said support.   
     
     
       10. A method as in claim 8 wherein said handle-shaping member has a curved surface and said heat shrinking and said drawing of said skirt section to said flat position against said surface, and thereafter cooling while retaining said position, causing said heat shrunk skirt section to set to a curve shape having ends merging tangentially with said side elements formed by the heat shrinking of said two transversely spaced side portions. 
     
     
       11. A method as in claim 8 including a plurality of said handle-shaping members upstanding from said support and arranging said skirt section about said members and heat shrinking to draw portions of said skirt section flat against each of said members. 
     
     
       12. A method as in claim 8 wherein said handle-shaping member has a concave surface portion and heat shrinking causes the drawing of said skirt section against and into said concave surface portion to provide a hand grip which is curved in cross section.